Scary Monsters and Nice Spirits
by EleKat
Summary: When Sarah Leonard's case is brought up, the Cold Case squad intend to find out who murdered the sixteen year old, even if that means Veronica Miller going undercover. Meanwhile, an old flame of A.D.A Curtis Bells appears with shocking news
1. Prologue

**The only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about**

**-Oscar Wilde **

* * *

><p><strong>Prologue<strong>

**October 30****th**** 2012**

Sarah Lenard walked down the hallway of her school, happy to finally be back after being sick for a week. She had missed her friends, but like having the week off.

She walked into the room where there was eight tables that sat two. All the seats were filled except hers.

She sat down and the girl beside her smiled.

Sarah's short hair was cut in a pixie cut, but a few strands were longer and went down just above her eyebrows.

"Anyone say anything while I was gone?" she whispered as she pulled her pink laptop from her bag. The girl beside her with sandy brown, straight hair shook her head.

"Not that I heard, they kept to themselves though. Nobody talked to me." The girl said with a shrug. Sarah nodded and opened her laptop and logged in. The girl beside her was already logged in and starting her work, which was cut short when the teacher walked out and fourteen of the students, which excluded Sarah and the girl, started talking.

"Did I hear correctly, Sarah?" one said.

"Hear what?" Sarah asked as she turned in her seat to look at the girl who sat behind her. The girl looked at her, not even shying away from the fact that she brought up something the girl talked about didn't even know.

"That you're pregnant. Is it true?" Sarah was speechless. The sandy brown haired girl didn't react and ignored them all. Sarah stared at the girl with an open mouth, "it is true then!"

"What? No!" Sarah cried as she stared at her, "I'm not pregnant. I've never been with a boy before!" the girl rolled her eyes.

"What are you? You're like sixteen, never even kissed one?" a girl across the classroom asked.

"Shut your mouth, asshole." The sandy brown haired girl shot.

"What are you going to do to me if we don't? You can't even throw a punch." A boy laughed mockingly.

Sarah glared at him, "yeah, shut the fuck up."

"Sarah Leonard! Adriana! That is enough from the both of you!" their teacher said as he walked back in. Adriana glared once more before going back to her work, while Sarah looked like she was about to say something. The whole room went silent again.

* * *

><p><strong>Three days later<strong>

Laying on the ground, short black hair was matted with blood, around it a puddle had formed and started to dry. It looked rusty and not shiny ruby.

Even though the body was laying what usually was face down, the head was turned to the side. The bodies clothing torn. The person was none other than Sarah Leonard. Hey blue eyes open and unseeing.

Paramedics started to get the body in a body bag while the police walked around, looking for clues.

Across the line of tape, Adriana stood there staring in at the body. No expression was on her face as she turned and walked away, getting lost in the crowd.

* * *

><p><strong>I do not own Cold Case, Oscar Wilde, or Skrillex in which the title comes from<strong>


	2. Chapter 1

_**Part 1: One year and three months later**_

**i**

Kat Miller walked through the door to go over to her desk when she looked towards the Boss' office to make sure he wasn't looking for her, when she saw her colleague Lilly Rush talking to a teenager with black hair.

She knew what this meant: a possible new case. She sat down at her desk as Nick Vera pulled out a doughnut.

"There one for me?" she asked him expectantly.

"Get your own doughnut." He grumbled. Kat rolled her eyes and took the second one off his desk and took a bite. "Hey!" he cried when he saw what she did. Kat just smirked at him.

"Snooze you lose." She said with a shrug and turned to her computer. About five minutes later Lilly walked over to the desks.

"We got a case." She said simply before walking to the cold room. Scotty Valens got up and followed her out along with Kat.

* * *

><p>"Sixteen year old Sarah Leonard. Shot in the head after being sexually assaulted." Lilly read off the file, "she was in foster care. Both parents killed in a fire when she was five."<p>

"Lived with foster parents Rose and Colin Phillips. She was just about to be adopted." Scotty read over her shoulder. Kat was looking at some of the photos that were encased in the box. "Bad luck."

She held one up for both of them to see, it was a picture of a sandy brown haired girl and Sarah.

"Sarah with her friend, Adriana, no last name, age eleven." Kat said as she read the back of the photo where it said who the two were.

"If we speak to Adriana, maybe she will know something that happened." Lilly said. Kat nodded as she looked at another photo which was young Sarah with her parents, when Scotty spoke.

"That won't be happening. It says here she went to _It Academy _lots of fosters kids go there, actually only they go there. Most of the kids there are terrified of police. Won't talk." Scotty said, "I had a case there once, the younger part of the Academy in a different part of town, actually I think I met this Adriana girl. She was around six though. Dark hair." He said.

"Well if she remembers you, she may talk to you." Kat said. Scotty nodded and continued to stare at the file before closing it and putting it down.

* * *

><p>Curtis Bell sat in his office doing some last minute paper work that he was supposed to do the night before, but hadn't because his girlfriend was over.<p>

He smiled at the thought of Kat but tried to push her out of his mind so he could finish his work.

He was just about finished, when the phone on his desk rang. Sighing, he picked it up. Making note of the time, he had a meeting in exactly an hour.

"Hello A.D.A Bell." He said into the receiver.

"_Hello, this is Nurse Kelly Stires." _Said the lady.

"What can I do for you today?" Curtis asked as he held the phone between his ear and shoulder and started to write on the paper.

"_I'm phoning about Miss Rachel Strike, she said you both dated in the late ninety's, early 2000s." _she said. Curtis froze, he hadn't heard her name since they broke up.

"Yes, we did. Why?" he asked.

"_Rachel would like you to come see her, she has some important information to tell you. She is currently at the Drug Rehab in Fishtown." _Nurse Kelly said.

"Yes… of course." Curtis said. "I have a meeting in an hour, but it most likely won't last for long. I can come about one?" There was the sound of flipping paper on the other line.

"_Yes, we are free at that time. I'll see you then._" The phone was hung up.

Curtis was confused, why did Rachel need to see him? It wasn't like they were even that close while dating, and she had always made it obvious that her drugs were more important than their relationship.

He sat back in his chair, a look of concentration on his face and the paperwork laid on his desk, forgotten. He was in deep thought, until he looked at the clock and realized unless he didn't leave that minute he'd be late.

Quickly, he stood up, stuffed all the papers in his brief case, and left his office to go to his meeting, but the only thing on his mind was what Rachel could possibly tell him.

**I don't own Cold Case. If I did it would still be on**


	3. Chapter 2

**"There are things learnt even from the dead"**

**A Game of Thrones (pg 1) Royce**

* * *

><p><strong>ii<strong>

"Sarah was an amazing student, passionate." A blonde lady explained as she sat down on a high back, winged chair in a sitting room full of old, antique furniture.

"Mrs. Phillips-"

"Please, call me Rose." The blonde lady said with a small, tearful smile.

"Rose, did Sarah ever talk about her life before she met you?" Lilly asked from her spot on the uncomfortable couch, which Scotty sat beside her on.

"All the time, mostly she told me the differences between here and where she used to live." Rose explained.

"What were the differences?" Scotty asked her.

"Well, the man used to beat the children. Most of the kids at that school went there." Colin Phillips explained as he entered the room with a mug of coffee. "That happens in a lot of the homes, the kids are hurt more than one should at that age. They lose their trust. Everyone and everything is their enemy."

Lilly and Scotty nodded, wishing that wasn't true. They kept the mask on though, the emotionless one.

"Sarah's friend, Adriana, was eleven in this picture." Lilly said as she pulled out the picture and placed it on the table. The photo had the young faces in it, their smiles forever engrained in ink.

"Yes, Adriana is a very smart and talented girl. Most don't get into the academy till they are thirteen, she got in at the age of ten." Rose said, "Sarah acted like Adriana was her younger sister, wanted to protect her from the monsters."

* * *

><p><em>"Here you go girls." Rose said with a smile as she put the plate of Nachos in front of the two girls.<em>

_"Thank you Mrs. Phillips." Adriana said politely._

_"Call me Rose, darling." She said with a smile at the sandy brown haired girl._

_"Thanks Rose!" Sarah said without looking away from the TV where the girls were watching some show. Rose shook her head in amusement and walked out._

_The show they were watching was some murder mystery show, and they were watching as the lady on it examined the bones of a victim. _

_"Does this happen in real life?" Adriana asked as she stared at the screen._

_"No, it doesn't." Sarah lied as she looked at Adriana. The girl looked down and picked up one of the chips that were covered in cheese. She had a look on her face that no matter how hard, Sarah could not read._

_"You're lying." Adriana said, "Bad things happen a lot."_

_"Only to people that deserve it." Sarah stated but then felt horrible for her words as Adriana's face fell._

_"Do we deserve it? Everything that has happened?" the words spilt quickly from her mouth.. Sarah shook her head as the girl and pulled her in for a hug._

_"No, we don't." she said and pushed some of the hair away from the young girls face, "Adri, we don't deserve this, none of us do." She said. From the kitchen doorway, Rose was watching the confrontation of the young girls._

_"But you just said some people deserve it. And if it is happening to us, would that not mean that we deserve it?" the young one looked up at the older girl, one eyebrow raised over her dark eyes as her voice tried to reason with her friends words._

_"I was wrong, bad things should only happen to people that have killed and hurt others. You've done none of those things girl, and so, not even for one second are you to think that you deserve what happens to all of us. You deserve much, much more."_

* * *

><p>"All Sarah wanted was to protect that girl." Rose said as she started to cry.<p>

Lilly and Scotty nodded, "I hate to ask you this," began Scotty, "but did Sarah have any enemy's? Anyone who would want to hurt her?" Colin and Rose both shook their heads.

"Nobody that I can think of or that she told us about," Colin said as he wrapped an arm around his wife's shoulder protectively. "Please, find out what happened to Sarah. Make it so she didn't die in vain."

* * *

><p>"This looks like a school for snobs, not smart foster kids." Nick said as he and Kat walked up the pathway leading to the private school.<p>

"Veronica once tried to convince me to let her come here, told her she couldn't. She didn't have the qualifications, never will if I can help it." Nick knew that Kat wasn't talking about the smartness, for Veronica was a very bright girl, but for the fact that Kat would never let her go into foster care.

The two opened the doors and went inside. Everything was clean and polished, it didn't look like teenagers were the ones that went to school here, more like adults.

"You must be the detectives." They heard a voice say. Looking up, they saw a lady walking down a staircase. Her slacks were neatly pressed and her shirt tucked in with a blazer and tie. "I'm Madam Jefferson, the headmistress here."

"I'm detective Miller and this is Detective Vera, we're here to talk to you about one of your students, Sarah Leonard." Madam Jefferson nodded her head and once she reached the ground floor motioned for them to follow her.

They followed her down a hallway and passed a room which what they expected was all the students. Only one looked up, one with bleached hair that had light pink, purple, blue and green streaks through it.

Once they were out of view, Nick looked away. In the girl's dark eyes, he felt like he knew her. Something about the girl was familiar.

"Please, sit." The headmistress said as she motioned towards two chairs. The detectives sat and she sat down behind her desk.

"We wanted to ask you what Sarah was like, if she had any enemy's." Nick asked.

"Sarah did not get along with a number of the students, they fought a lot, not physically of course. Verbally though, it was a shock that our teachers managed to get them to stop arguing." She said. Kat nodded thoughtfully.

"Any in particular?" asked Nick as he looked around the office.

"Well…"

* * *

><p><em>Sarah sat typing away on her laptop, a report that she was working on for English class. She was so engrossed in the work that when she stopped for one second, and took her hands away from the keyboard just to shake the soreness away from her wrists, and hand came and shut the lid of the laptop.<em>

_"Excuse me!" Sarah said as she glared up at the girl who laughed._

_"Awe, the poor babies work hasn't been saved, has it?" the girl said with a taunting smile as she walked off._

_"You're just jealous." Sarah called at her. The girl had gone to sit on the other side of the small library. _

_"Jealous of what? Your lack of saving skills?" one boy asked from beside the girl._

_"The fact that _I'm _getting adopted and you aren't." Sarah said with a smug smile on her face. The male and females faces turned from smug amusement to anger in under two seconds. The female started to stand up but the male put his hand on her arm to stop her._

_"Courtney, no." he said calmly. "she doesn't know what is going to happen." He continued._

_"What are you talking about?" Sarah asked._

_"Well, they'll adopt you but then realize you're not what they want. Then, they'll throw you back." He shrugged. "It's the circle of life."_

* * *

><p>"Who are they?" Kat asked.<p>

"Courtney Richards and Phillip Brennan." Madam Jefferson said, "but you won't be able to speak to them."

"Why not, are they dead?" Nick asked. Kat and Jefferson both gave him looks, making him shrink back in his chair.

"The students here do not trust police. They will not talk to you." Madam Jefferson said, "now, unless you need anything else I need to get back to my students. I expect you can let yourself out." And with that, she walked out of the office.

* * *

><p><strong>I do not own Cold Case<strong>


	4. Chapter 3

**iii**

"Wanna go for lunch?" Curtis looked up to see his girl, Detective Miller, looking at him from the door of his office.

"I wish." Curtis said as he smiled at her a small, doppy smile that made her heart melt. Something that she would never tell anyone. Ever. Not even him.

"Why not?" She asked and stepped into the office a little more.

"Got a meeting in Fish Town at one. I got to leave pretty soon." Curtis explained.

"Fish Town?" Kat asked curiously. This was the first she had heard of this meeting. Curtis nodded. She was a cop, and knew how to get information when she wanted it so he knew he needed to get out of there.

"I'll see you at dinner, okay?" he said and stood up, gave her a quick kiss and left, leaving her behind bewildered.

* * *

><p>"Did you talk to the foster parents?" Asked detective Stillman.<p>

"Yeah, couldn't think of any enemy's. Really torn up." Scotty said as they all stood in their boss' office. "They cared so much."

"The principal didn't know anything either, though gave us two names of kids that Sarah regularly had arguments with." Kat explained.

"Apparently she was really close with the Adriana girl. Treated her like a little sister." Lilly said,

"Scotty, you knew her right?" asked Stillman.

"Yeah, on a different case a few years ago. She might remember me and open up." Scotty said. Stillman nodded.

"Good thing to try."

They all stood there, thinking about how they could get the kids to open up to them. Kids that were scared of the police that wouldn't talk to them.

"Hey mom." Kat turned around as Veronica walked into the office.

"What are you doing here?" Kat asked. The others looked away as they tried to give the two privacy in the small office. Leaving was an idea they hadn't thought about.

"Well, I got dress coded and sent home so I decided to come here since grandma is at bingo." Veronica explained, "What-"

"What do you mean, "dress coded"?" Kat asked as she placed a hand on her hip.

"Well… my shirt may or may not have no sleeves…" Veronica trailed off.

"Veronica Miller! You know those types of clothing is not permitted at your school, or at home!" Kat said exasperated.

"Sorry," Veronica said though she didn't sound sorry at all. "What's the case?" she asked. Before someone could say that she wasn't allowed to know, Nick spoke.

"A foster kid your age was murdered just over a year ago," He said. "I just got an idea." He added as a look of realization appeared on his face as he looked over at the teenager. Kat looked between the two as she realised what we was talking about.

"No. No way," Kat said. "No way in hell is my daughter going there." Kat said as she glared at her partner.

"Going where?" Veronica and Scotty asked at the same time. Lilly, who seemed to know what Nick was thinking spoke up.

"Vera has the idea that Veronica should go to the school undercover cause then the kids will open up to her."

"I'll do it!" Veronica said with a smile.

"No, no you won't," Kat said as she glared at Nick, "No way am I putting my baby in danger."

"Come on Miller, it is the only way we will find out what happened." Nick said.

"It is actually a sort of good idea." Scotty agreed. Kat glared at the two.

"No way am I allowing it," She said as she stood her ground.

"Come on mom, please. I promise not to do anything that could endanger my life. You heard Detective Vera, it might be the only way to find out what happened." Veronica pleaded.

"I agree to let you." Stillman said.

"But boss!" Kat said in shock as she turned to stare at him.

"It might be the only way Kat." Kat glared at him but nodded, knowing not to go against what her boss said.

She exited the office pulling Veronica with her and over to her desk to sign her up for the stupid school. She knew most of it was done online but the rest she would need someone to go in for. And she knew who was going to have to do that, no matter how much she hated it.

* * *

><p>"How long has she lived with you, Mr. Jones?" asked Madam Jefferson. Jarrod Jones sat in one of the chairs with Veronica beside him.<p>

"Three years." Jarrod said. It was technically true, two weekends a month Veronica would come and stay with him and his wife.

"What do you specialize in, Veronica?" Madam Jefferson asked the fifteen year old nicely.

"Ballet," Veronica said with a smile. Madam Jefferson nodded and wrote it down. "I love English though." Veronica added.

"Well, I believe that we have a place for you here. The last opening actually," Madam Jefferson said as she shuffled some papers around. "You'll start tomorrow. I just need to ask you one question, is your last name spelled with an ER or AR?"

"AR." Veronica lied with a smile.

* * *

><p>"I have an appointment to see Rachel Strike," Curtis said to the front desk. The rehab was run down and not fancy like the one he had been in during a case in chestnut hill. Everything was dirty and the floors looked like nobody had cleaned them in months.<p>

"Name," the lady said even though she wasn't looking through records to see if he did indeed have an appointment. He could have been there to hurt Rachel and nobody would know.

"Curtis Bell."

"Go in." the lady said and motioned for him to go passed the desk and into the actual clinic. He nodded a thanks and walked past the counter and down the hallway.

The further down he got the louder it became, till the point that he was sure he was in the right place. And he was correct when he walked into a room full of people. Most in the white hospital gowns.

"You must be Curtis Bell." A lady said as she appeared beside him in blue scrubs.

"Nurse Kelly?" he asked. She nodded with a smile and he gave her the one that he gave people in interrogation, a friendly one that made people trust him easily.

"This way, Rachel has been anxious to see you," She said and led the way down a different corridor.

This one had all different doors that Curtis had concluded lead to different rooms. Some of the doors were closed, some were open and empty. And some opened as they walked by, people looking out of them and at him. Their skin shallow, their eyes hollow.

Finally they reached the end door and Kelly opened it revealing a nice sitting room with one couch, a table and a chair. On the couch with matted, greasy hair sat Rachel Strike.

Rachel had once been exceedingly beautiful, with high cheek bones, full lips and a beautiful figure and flawless tan skin. Now her skin was pale and yellowing, her lips dry and cracked, her eyes bloodshot. She was hollow, her eyes were and her body.

"Curtis." She rasped and stood up. She threw herself at him in a hug. Something the A.D.A was not expecting. He hesitantly hugged her back, not exactly wanting to but did it because he knew it was the nice thing to do. And that was what he was. Nice.

"What do you want, Rachel." He said. He hadn't bothered to say she looked well, they both knew it'd be a lie.

Curtis Bell hadn't seen Rachel Strike since April of 2000. The day she had broken up with him because he wanted her to get help.

"I need to tell you something, something important." Rachel said as she sat down on the couch again. Curtis sat on the chair opposite her, not wanting to be too close.

"What is it?" Curtis said.

"I want us to get back together." She blurted out. He wasn't sure if this was the important information or not.

"I have a girlfriend, Rachel. I love her. I don't know you anymore. I don't think I ever did." Curtis said. He didn't want to let her down too hard, but after he said his words he felt as though he was being too harsh, but before he could correct himself of apologize Rachel spoke.

"That wasn't what was so important, that was just me trying." She said with a faint, ghost like smile which vanished as quickly as it appeared. "The reason I left you was because I was pregnant, Curtis. We have a daughter."

Curtis was stunned into silence. This girl, the one that had left him all those years ago, had a child. A child with him. He had a child. Well, another child than the one he already had with his ex-wife.

"Why have you never told me?" Curtis asked, his voice no more than a whisper.

"I was scared, I didn't want her taken away from me at first. But then… I realized I couldn't take care of her. She deserves better." Rachel said hoarsely.

"What does she look like?" Curtis asked.

"Here is her school photo." Rachel said as she cleared her throat and pulled a folded photo put of her pocket.

Curtis took it and held it to the light so it shone on the girls face.

She was tan, full lips and dark brown hair. Her eyes were dark like his but her petite nose and full lips were Rachels.

"She plays Piano, plays chess, I'm pretty sure she used to be in dance or is by the school." Rachel spoke and Curtis was vaguely listening.

The girls was smiling at the camera, a smile so beautiful it could belong to a model. But in her eyes, it didn't reach them. They didn't look happy, full of joy like they should have. They were sad. Haunted by something that couldn't be found.

"May I keep this?" Curtis asked. Rachel nodded and Curtis stood up and fled the room, forgetting to ask her name.

**I do not own anything to do with Cold Case**


	5. Chapter 4

**iv**

The next day Jarrod dropped Veronica off at the school and she walked inside, the school books she had given her were inside her backpack, along with her turquoise cromebook and pens.

Veronica was nervous but refused to let it show as she walked into the school and down the hallway to the door the headmistress had shown her the day before.

Walking inside, she saw a teacher up front and all the desks full accept one beside a girl with colourful hair.

"You must be Veronica." The teacher said warmly. Veronica brought her attention up to the teacher.

"I am." She said with a smile.

"You can sit beside Adriana over there." She pointed at the girl with colourful hair. Veronica nodded and went and sat down.

Adriana didn't say anything just typed away on her laptop till the teacher left the room to let them do their work.

* * *

><p>"You were Sarah's social worker, correct?" Lilly asked as she sat in the social workers office. The dark skinned lady nodded and looked at Lilly in disinterest.<p>

"Correct." She said as she started to sift through papers that littered the top of her desk.

"Did Sarah like living at the Phillips?" she asked and looked at the obviously bored SW.

She didn't answer at first, and finally looked up with pursed lips, "if Sarah did not like them, why would she want to be adopted by them? She loved them." She said. Lilly looked down at the name plate on her desk which said her name (obviously),

"Ms. Spencer, who do you think killed Sarah?" Lilly bluntly asked.

"In my opinion she brought it upon herself," Ms. Spencer said casually. "That girl went through homes like lice goes through children, quickly and efficiently. The fact that she lived there and wanted to stay there was a miracle in itself."

"Please, answer the question." Lilly said.

"I don't know who killed Sarah, I'd check with her old foster parents. Especially the Cains." Ms. Spencer said, "Now. I have a meeting, so I'd like to ask you to leave."

* * *

><p>"Do you remember me, Adriana?" Scotty asked as he sat in the interrogation room with Adriana and her Social Worker.<p>

"Vaguely." Adriana said. Her rainbow type hair was gone and replaced with a natural dark brown hair.

"I saw a picture of you with Sarah, you had a different shade of hair." Scotty said.

"I own wigs so I can change my hair colour," Adriana said in a monotone voice. She turned to look at her Social Worker. "May I go now?"

Charles Carter shook his head.

"How were you with Sarah?" Scotty asked as he stared at the thirteen year old.

"Close." Adriana said as she looked down at the table and refused to look up at Scotty.

"How close?" Scotty asked.

"She was like my sister, not that it matters to you." She stated and crossed her arms.

* * *

><p>"<em>I have a younger sister," Fifteen year old Sarah said to ten year old Adriana one day. The child looked up at her teenage friend. Sarah was putting makeup on Adriana to cover a bruise on her cheekbone.<em>

"_I don't. I don't have any siblings." Adriana said as she winced as Sarah's hand brushed over her bruise._

_Sarah didn't say anything else. She didn't know what to say and Adriana didn't either. So, neither said anything._

_Once the makeup was finished Adriana pulled the elastic out of her hair and let the then, shoulder length locks fall down just over her shoulders._

"_What is it like? Having a sibling?" Adriana asked._

"_Amazing. It is like you always have someone there, a best friend." Sarah said with a small smile. The smile turned into a frown just as quickly as it appeared onto her face._

"_But?" the young one employed._

"_But, when my parents died my sister and I got split apart. She was two at the time. I haven't seen her since I was five." Sarah said with a sigh. _

"_Why not?" Adriana pressed._

_Sarah gave her a look of annoyance that said she wouldn't answer. Adriana pressed her lips together in a silent promise to be quiet. _

"_How about this," Sarah started finally. "How about I be your older sister. Then you can have the sibling you are missing and I can have mine I miss." _

"_Deal." Adriana paused, "what does that imply?"_

"_It means, that I will be here for you forever." She said with a smile._

"_Promise?"_

"_Promise."_

* * *

><p>"She broke her promise." Adriana said quietly.<p>

"Not intentionally." Replied Scotty softly as he looked at the girl.

"Everyone breaks promises. You can't trust people. Nobody speaks the truth, words are all broken promises and lies." She stood up. "I want to leave."

"I have just one more question." Scotty said as he sat down across the table from her. Adriana gave him a hard stare, not a glare but almost one. "Do you know who killed Sarah?"

"No. And before you ask, it was not me. They ruled me out already after they found out she died." Adriana said, "Read the report."


	6. Chapter 5

"**I feel sorry for you, and I'm going to be your friend."**

"**I don't want to be your friend." Cath said as sternly as she could. "I like that we're not friends."**

"**Me, too," Reagan said. "I'm sorry you ruined it by being so pathetic."**

**Fangirl (pg 43) Cather & Reagan**

* * *

><p><strong>v<strong>

Veronica had decided she wanted the girl who sat beside her to talk to her (after the girl not speaking to her the whole week)

She had found out basic information.

Her name is Adriana

She is thirteen

She is intelligent, and a pianist.

And she was best friends with Sarah Leonard.

"Hello!" Veronica said cheerfully as she sat down next to the girl. Today her hair was pink.

"Hi." Adriana said without looking up from the screen of her laptop.

"I'm-"

"Veronica Millar, age sixteen. In "foster care" but we both know it's just an act." Veronica was stunned into silence. How did she know all this?

They said she was very smart though, so she decided that was the only way. Her acting couldn't be _that_ bad. Could it?

"Don't tell anyone." Veronica said.

"Didn't plan on it." Muttered the young girl. Veronica sighed, knowing that that she probably wouldn't get a better response than that yet, so she decided to let her go… for now.

* * *

><p>For the past week Curtis had tried to avoid Kat as much as possible. It seemed juvenile, but he was so worried that she would figure out what was wrong before he knew how to tell her.<p>

He didn't want her to leave him, he loved her. And as much as she hated admitting it, he knew she loved him too.

He didn't want to hurt her though and this definitely would.

He sat in his office working on papers for a case when the door opened.

"Wanna go for lunch?" he looked up and saw Kat standing there.

He was momentarily speechless, not knowing what to say. What was the right answer? He wanted to say yes but knew if he did he would spill.

"I need to tell you something." He blurted out then cursed himself for doing so.

"What?" Kat asked. She was slightly worried. Was he breaking up with her?

"After the soul crushed and I got the divorce I was dating this girl named Rachel for a bit then she broke up with me." He started.

"Okay, why do I need to know this?" she asked in confusion and raised an eyebrow in his direction.

"Well, last week she called me and told me to come to see her, so I did and she told me that she broke up with me after finding out she was pregnant… I have a kid I never knew about." Curtis said.

Kat stood stunned. Her boyfriend had a kid he never knew about?

"I'm sorry I didn't tell-"

"Shut up for a minute." Kat said as the information processed through her brain.

"Okay, it's okay." She said aloud. To herself and to him, "what's her name?"

He pulled the photo out of his pocket and handed it to Kat, not speaking.

"Oh my god." She said as she recognized the girl in the photo.

* * *

><p>"The last person on our list to visit is Joshua Cain," Nick said as he looked at the list. "Whose gonna go?"<p>

"I'll go with you," Will said as he looked over at the three. He had been gone on vacation for a week and wanted to be useful. Nick nodded and the two left the room.

* * *

><p>"How long did Sarah live with you?" Nick asked as the two sat in the living room of the small house. Joshua Cain sat in front of them.<p>

"Two months," Joshua said. He was drinking a beer and hand a hot dog in the other hand. "Glad the bitch left."

"And why is that?" asked Will.

"Didn't do nothin' but complain," Joshua said as he finished a beer. "wan' one?" he asked as he looked at the two cops.

"No thanks." Nick said. Will agreed with him. "Did you hear from her again?"

"Of course. Friends with my foster kid," Joshua said. "Adriana, she goes to that same fancy school. Don't know what is wrong with the public school, but that girl refuses to go."

* * *

><p>"<em>What's wrong with public school?" Joshua asked. Adriana was dusting a shelf, her hair pulled back into a pony tail.<em>

"_I don't like it."_

"_You never been in it." He said and stared at the girl. Adriana was short for her age of twelve. Her hair fell down halfway down her back._

"_Sarah said it is bad." Adriana stated as she turned to look at him. _

_Joshua glared at her back. "Sarah is dead."_

"_Her legacy lives on." Adriana stated._

* * *

><p>"Sarah's word is law with Adriana, even when she is dead," Joshua said. "Fucking annoying."<p>

"Thanks for your time, Mr. Cain. We'll be in touch." Will said as he stood up with Nick. The two cops left and the door shut behind them.

As the two friends and partners walked towards the car, Nick looked as though he was thinking about something. "I have a bad feeling about him." he said.

"I do too." Will agreed.

* * *

><p>"Did you know they're investigating Sarah's death?" one of the girls said in gym. Veronica tried to act as though she had not a clue what they were talking about.<p>

She quickly found out that they gossiped, a lot. But they were the only ones that talked to her, Adriana hardly spoke to her.

"So stupid," The guy that walked up said. "They think that one of us did it. We didn't."

"I know, right." A girl said then turned to Veronica, "have you heard about it?"

"About this Sarah girl? Nope." She lied. She had been briefed about it by her mom. She was going to the station after school, to see her and tell the cops what she had found out so far.

"Well, she was sixteen when she went missing. Shorties best friend, the two were always together. We were some of the last to see her." This peeked Veronica's interest.

"Really?"

"Yeah. She had to go somewhere though, so someone probably saw her before she… you know… departed from this world."

Veronica nodded. "She was a piece of shit though. Deserved it." A boy said.

All of the sudden, Veronica felt a hand on her bare elbow. She looked to see Adriana, and this time wig less.

She noticed the girl was always wearing a life-like wig. And now she wasn't. Her long hair was pulled into a ponytail.

"Be my partner," Was all she said and promptly drug Veronica away. Veronica was shocked and pulled away only when they were across the gym.

She looked at the girl oddly.

"You needed a way out," Adriana said simply. "I refuse to let you be sucked in by them. Therefore you will stick with me. You are in no way replacing Sarah though," Veronica nodded as she noted the slight warning in Adriana's tone.

The girls hit the volleyball at each other and did their warm ups.

Veronica noted that while Adriana was short, her limbs were all skinny, and in the lighting she could almost see that her skin wasn't as smooth as it appeared. Also, in the bright, washed out lights, Adriana's makeup was slightly darker in certain spots.

"Why do you wear wigs?" Veronica asked.

"I always have wanted to have a different coloured hair without dying it. Sarah had a bunch so she gave them all to me," Adriana stated. "I like them. I usually don't wear them at home though, Mr. Cain doesn't like it."

Veronica nodded. "If you don't mind me asking, were you and Sarah close?"

"Like my sister, the one I never had," Adiana said quietly, and blinked back tears she hadn't shed since she was six.

**I do not own Cold Case or Fangirl**


	7. Chapter 6

**VI**

"Adriana wears wigs, and she obviously has no clue how Sarah died," Veronica said as she sat in the break room with all the cops. She noticed the only one that wasn't there was her mother. "Where's mom?"

"Someone with Bell," Nick said passively. "What about everyone else?"

"They were apparently the last to see her," Veronica said.

"Adriana has been ruled out, she wouldn't have had the strength," Scotty said. "None of those kids would have. We got no leads."

Everyone was stumped when Kat and Curtis walked in.

"Where've you two been?" Lilly asked.

"I've found out I have a kid," Curtis said. "Well another one," Veronica stared at the two with wide eyes.

"You're not…" she addressed her mom.

"No, hell no." Kat said as she shook her head. Curtis rolled his eyes and put the picture Rachel had given him down on the table.

"THAT'S ADRIANA!" Veronica yelled as she jumped up. All the detectives, besides Kat, looked at Curtis and the photo.

"She has your hair, and eyes," Scotty noted. "Well, now that we know this… now what?"

"We find out who killed Sarah." Lilly said. Everyone in the room nodded in agreement and Veronica stared down at the photo then pulled out her phone to text someone since she wasn't being included in the conversation.

_You never told me about your parents –V_

She eyed the doughnut that sat in front of Nick. She wanted it. She knew that it was wrong to take others food though, even if her mother did it all the time.

Her phoned buzzed.

_Not much to tell. My mom has been in rehab since I was four, in and out. Like a marry-go-round. –A_

Veronica looked at her mom's boyfriend out of the corner of her eyes, he wasn't looking at her so she felt safe to type.

_What about your dad? –V_

She locked her phone.

"Who're you texting?" Nick asked as he looked across the table at her.

"Someone from the school. I wanted to know if we have homework," Veronica lied. He nodded but her mom gave her a look, she knew that she was lying and didn't say anything.

Before the phone could buzz Veronica was looking at the message;

_My mom told me about him once when I was eight. Apparently he is some lawyer or A.D.A with the police or something. His name is Curtis Bell… I think. Never met him and never seen a picture. I don't think he knows I exist. –A_

_I bet he'd know. –V_

Veronica stood up as her mom motioned that it was time to go.

"Bye," She said before walking out, and she knew that sooner or later they were going to find out she was texting Adriana. But Adriana wasn't the killer, so it wasn't a bad thing. Was it?

* * *

><p>Rachel sat in her room at the rehab, staring at a different picture of Adriana. It was when she was younger.<p>

"Kelly!" she yelled. Each floor had three nurses, Kelly was the only one Rachel would talk to.

"Yes?" The nurse asked as she poked her head into the room.

Rachel seemed to be gathering her thoughts before she spoke, "I want to see Adriana, get her here." Kelly shook her head though, sadly. Rachel stared at her, wanting know why the nurses seemed unhappy.

"I guess they didn't tell you, you've been in rehab so much that they've taken away Adriana fully. You get out again and she has to stay where she is. You've gotten no more chances." Kelly said. Rachel stared at her before screaming;

"GET OUT!"

* * *

><p>"You three were the last to see Sarah?"<p>

"Yeah, so what?" Scotty and Lilly were interviewing Courtney, Phillip, and Alice. The last three to see Sarah before she died.

"What were you doing?" Lilly asked. "And don't even think of lying."

* * *

><p>"<em>Why wouldn't she come? She is a kid, kids love Halloween!" Alice exclaimed as the four of them walked down the street.<em>

"_Probably her foster parent." Phillip said with a shrug as he took a drag of his cigar. _

"_He is my old one," Sarah explained. "I'll get Adriana, don't worry."_

_The teenagers walked up to the door with the faded red paint that was chipping off._

_Knocking, the four stood there._

"_I'M NOT GIVING OUT CANDY!" yelled a voice from somewhere in the house._

"_I don't want any fuckin' candy. I want to see Adriana!" Sarah yelled at the door. It swung open, forcefully. Revealing Cain. _

"_She isn't going anywhere with _you_." He snarled at Sarah. "get off my land!"_

_Sarah glared at him. She hated him when she lived with him and hated him now._

"_She is just a kid, let her come trick-or-treating!" Courtney said drunkenly._

"_Get off my land before I call the cops." He glared at the teens before slamming the door._

_They sighed and started down the street again, stopping on a street corner under a lamp post._

"_I'm gonna go try again, you three go ahead," Sarah said as she looked back at the house. "Adriana deserves Halloween."_

* * *

><p>"That was the last time we saw her," Phillip stated. "That house is fuckin' creepy, man. Cain is the worst foster parent there is, yet he always get 'em."<p>

The girls nodded. "I lived with him when Sarah did, he is a pervert," Alice stated. "You want your killer? I bet it was him."

"Thanks for helping." Scotty said as the teens slowly left.

* * *

><p>"What am I here for?" Cain asked.<p>

"We want to know why you killed Sarah, I know that you did. But my question is, how was she outside by the street light?"

Cain glared at her. "I want a lawyer."

"And I want a confession," Lilly said as she glared down at the man. "Now spill."

* * *

><p><em>Joshua was staring out the window when he saw that pain, Sarah, walking back down the side walk towards the house. He grabbed him gun, which he always carried when he left the house, and walked outside and onto the side walk.<em>

"_Go home," He demanded. _

"_Not without Adriana," Sarah said. She was going to stand her ground. He wasn't going to push her around, not anymore._

_The two stood, glaring at each other. The sky was dark and cloudy. Thunder sounded, but not a drop of rain spilt from the sky._

"_Adriana is _mine_. Do you hear me?!" Cain yelled at her._

"_She isn't a piece of property you can own!" Sarah yelled at him. "None of us are! We're human beings with feelings! Let her go and be happy!"_

_That was enough for Cain. He wasn't letting another one slip through the cracks, get taken away. So, he raised his arm and shot her._

* * *

><p>Scotty pulled Cain up to stand and cuffed him.<p>

"Joshua Cain, you are under arrest for the murder of Sarah Leonard. You have the right to remain silent." Scotty said as he pulled him from the room, Lilly following.

**I don't own Cold Case**


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